Lakshya Sen kept India's flag flying at the Kumamoto Masters Japan Super 500 badminton tournament by reaching the semifinals, while veteran shuttler Kidambi Srikanth bowed out after a loss here on Friday.
World No. 13 Lakshya, who needs to break into the top eight of the BWF World Tour rankings to qualify for the season-ending tournament in China, outwitted Japan's Yushi Tanaka 21-16, 21-15 in a 40-minute quarterfinal.
Eighth seed Lakshya, who recently won the Hylo Open, is currently 12th in the BWF World Tour rankings with 64,980 points. He will face sixth seed Alwi Farhan of Indonesia in the semifinals. The Indian has lost both his previous meetings with the world No. 10.
World No. 31 Srikanth, however, once again struggled for consistency as he looked in control for much of the match but suffered an inexplicable meltdown in the second game to lose 22-24, 15-21 to Japan's world No. 15 Koki Watanabe.
The Indian had stunned world No. 8 and two-time world championships silver medallist Kodai Naraoka of Japan on Thursday.
{{/usCountry}}The Indian had stunned world No. 8 and two-time world championships silver medallist Kodai Naraoka of Japan on Thursday.
{{/usCountry}}On Friday, after a closely-fought opening game, Srikanth, a 2021 World Championships silver medallist, led 12-5 in the second before errors derailed his progress. Watanabe won 16 of the last 19 points to seal victory and book his place in the semifinals.
Lakshya vs Tanaka
The opening game featured short, snappy rallies, with the longest lasting just 23 shots, as the duo traded fast exchanges.
Lakshya stepped up at the right time, pulling away from 5-5 to take an 11-7 lead and open up a four-point cushion.
Tanaka fought back to 12-13 and 13-14 with a couple of brilliant cross-court jump smashes. But the Indian raised the pressure to move ahead 17-14, before Tanaka, in desperation, missed the line with his smash.
Lakshya was quick with his follow-up shots and soon earned five game points after Tanaka hit wide. He converted the second opportunity with a precise return into the corner.
The second game was closely contested initially, with the players locked at 3-3 and then 9-9 after a series of exchanges. A straight smash from Lakshya, followed by a misjudgement at the back from Tanaka, gave the Indian a two-point cushion.
Tanaka won a 30-shot rally to stay in contention at 11-13, but Lakshya responded with his trademark hop smash to make it 14-11.
Tanaka misjudged the shuttle again and also sprayed a shot wide. Lakshya unleashed another attacking return to move ahead 17-13. The Indian earned five match points and sealed the win when his opponent found the net.
Srikanth vs Watanabe
Srikanth, a former world No. 1, has looked in good touch this season as he defeated some top players, including Paris Olympic bronze medallist Lee Zii Jia of Malaysia on his way to the US Open final, before stunning world No. 9 Victor Lai of Canada to reach the China Masters Super 750 quarter-finals in September.
The 33-year-old from Guntur had beaten Watanabe twice in the past, but their previous encounters had been closely fought. Friday's meeting was no different, with both players engaging in a fierce battle from the outset before the Japanese shuttler took a two-point lead into the interval.
Watanabe extended his advantage to 17-14 before Srikanth fought back to level the scores at 17-17. The Japanese then found the net twice, while a fine drop shot from the Indian brought the scores level again at 18-18.
A defensive backhand block that went wide handed Watanabe a game point, but he sent his next shot into the net, allowing Srikanth to save it.
Watanabe earned another game point with a smash, only to find the net again as the scores moved to 21-21. Srikanth then earned a game point with a push towards the forehand corner but squandered the opportunity.
Another shot from Srikanth sailed wide, giving Watanabe his third game point, which he converted with a jump smash.
After the change of ends, Watanabe struggled with his control, allowing Srikanth to race to a 4-1 lead. The Indian took charge of the rallies, using sharp, angled returns to build a six-point cushion at the interval.
However, Srikanth sent a couple of shots long, while Watanabe raised the pace to claw his way back. The Japanese drew level at 14-14 with a smash, wiping out the Indian's six-point advantage.
Srikanth then suffered a dramatic collapse, repeatedly hitting wide and long, finding the net and failing to read Watanabe's smashes. The Japanese won 16 of the next 19 points to earn six match points and seal the contest.